#aka still figuring it out and at the copying stage of finding herself

[forgetfulmachineart]

[ID: A digital drawing styled to look like cut out photos taped to a dot grid paper. On the left is a full body of Gojo Satoru. He's wearing a dark jacket with a chibi Geto Suguru face. On the bottom right is a smaller full body of Gojo. He stands and smiles widely at the viewer. At the top right is Gojo and Nobara Kugisaki heads. Gojo smiles cutely while Nobara glowers at him with the label "Jealous of Gojo's modeling career. /End ID]

ref one, ref two

[agent-breakdance]

(Icarus Ch. 1) - Game On

Pairing: Ethan Ramsey x F! MC (Olivia Anika Cohen)

Word count: 1.3k words

A/N: Hey everyone! This is the first ever chapter I’ve written so saying that I’m terrified is a huge understatement. This series will be pretty fast paced and severely ANGSTY so I hope you guys like it! A huge thank you to my beta @deliciouslydeafeningstarlight for putting up with my ridiculous ideas and rants!

Warning: Language

Disclaimer: PB owns characters. There’s lots of Grey’s Anatomy and Friends references with some dialogue borrowed from Open Heart.

Tag list: @deliciouslydeafeningstarlight @drethanramslay @ohramsey @theeccentricbibliophile @justanotherrookie @kaavyaethanramsey @batgirlassociationofgothamcity @tyrilstarfury @lilypills @juneiswriting @fleur-de-jasmin-fdj @mvalentine @sanchita012 @choicesstan1 @junggoku @aylamreads @whatsamottowithyou @utterlyinevitable​ @openheart12​

Let me know if you’d like to be added or removed.

Song: Eye of the Tiger by Survivor.

She stepped out of the car and her eyes swept over the tall imposing structure in front of her.

Johns Hopkins University.

As she walked across the sprawling campus, she thought about the events of the previous years. She felt her chest tighten. Her heart started to race and fill with guilt. Her thoughts took her right back to the battlefield.

The campus was a different side of the same coin. The battlefield wasn’t new to her whatsoever. She had to work hard to survive. She couldn’t afford to fuck up. 

Not then. Not now. 

The consequences were the same. If she fucked up, people died. 

The only difference? 

There, she faced immediate repercussions but here, they would be long and drawn out, haunting her for the entirety of her career as a doctor.

 Her mind flooded with doubt as she started to question her own competence but before she could shake herself out of it, she collided with someone. She managed to catch herself just before face planting and looked up to see a tall, stone-faced figure looming over her with a copy of Harrison’s Principles of Internal Medicine. He had been so engrossed in the book that he had failed to see her coming. 

He looked at her with slight concern, his brow creasing almost imperceptible to most but her sharp senses picked up on it. He immediately schooled his features to a scowl and snapped at her, “Watch where you’re going. I suppose I should have listened to my father when he said the admissions standards are in decline here.” He gave her a withering look before he stalked away. 

She muttered under her breath…. “Jerk.”

Picking up her bags, she made her way to the dorm. She got her phone out and quickly checked her room number. She stood outside the door to her shared room and chanted softly, almost like a prayer…… “Please don’t be a bitch…please don’t be a bitch.”

Apparently, the walls (and door) were thin because a cheery voice called out to her from inside, “You know, I was just thinking the same thing about you…”

Olivia cursed under her breath and opened the door with a sheepish smile. “Sorry, I didn’t know the walls were so thin.” 

“That’s quite alright. I was just praying that you weren’t a shark.”

“Excuse me?!” 

“We students gotta stick together right? This whole program was designed to push us to our limits. We won’t get through unless we have each other’s backs! Sharks only look out for Number 1. But what they don’t realize is that there’s safety in numbers. So let’s be dolphins!”

Olivia burst out laughing. “So long as I don’t have to make dolphin noises.”

She held out her hand. 

“Olivia Cohen.”

She was quickly smothered in a hug by her roommate. 

“So nice to meet you! I’m Sienna Trinh.”

As they pulled out of their hug, Sienna fetched a box and held it open for Olivia. 

“Chocolate chip cookies!”, she said. 

Olivia gave her a broad smile. “Oh we’re gonna get along just fine...”

***

Seeing as how Sienna had already been there for a week, she offered to give Olivia a tour of the campus. Olivia agreed though there wasn’t a single part of the campus or the university that she hadn’t thoroughly researched.

As they wandered through the campus, she spotted him. He seemed to be engaged in light conversation with another person. As Olivia looked on, details caught her eye. The reasonable space between them and his relaxed, unguarded stance would suggest that he was with a friend. “So he does have friends… surprising, considering the stick up his ass”, she thought to herself.

“Who has a stick up his ass?”, Sienna asked. That shook Olivia from her thoughts. “Wait…did I just say that out loud?”

“Have you guys met already?” 

“Yup. Mr. Stick up his ass was actually the first person I met here.” She quickly explained their encounter.  

“Whoa… he’s a Grade A Shark for sure.”

They both laugh. Olivia glances over at him, only to be greeted by his stern narrowed eyes staring right at her. Sienna grabs her hand and pulls her along, away from his gaze.

***

He walked around campus completely absorbed in the book he was reading when he heard a familiar voice call out to him.

“Ethan Jonah Ramsey, do you ever not read?”

Ethan looked up and saw his best friend of three years, Tobias Carrick. They had done pre med together. Tobias and Ethan were always complete opposites. Tobias had always been the fun-loving one and Ethan, the wet blanket but Tobias had managed to lead him astray once in a while.

“And what, end up like you? Not a chance.”

“You’d be lucky to end up like this.” He gestured to his body. 

“Anyways, did you meet anyone else yet or are you determined to keep your total friend count at 1 forever?”

Ethan’s eyes shifted slightly as he thought back to his morning encounter but he focused back into the present and smirked. “If it were up to me, it’d be 0, Carrick.”

“Call the doctor, I’ve been wounded. I suppose that’ll be us soon enough… Still we should try to find you some more friends.” Tobias starts pointing at random students. “What about him or her or her?” 

Ethan’s eyes follow his finger as they land on the final person he points at.

 It’s her. 

He narrows his eyes at her and regards her disdainfully as her eyes meet his. His frown starts to dissolve just as she is dragged away by her friend. A flash of regret passes by his face but it’s gone just as fast as it appeared. 

Tobias seems oblivious to this exchange as he keeps rattling on.

***

Soon enough, it’s time for orientation.

Sienna and Olivia make their way to the auditorium which was filled to the brim with the excited chattering of med students.

Amidst the horde of people, Olivia spots a handsome guy waving them over. There’s an air of confidence around him. Sienna leads them over and they take the two seats next to him. 

He extends a hand, giving her a playful wink. “Bryce Lahela aka the hottest med student here.”

Olivia rolled her eyes but couldn’t help but smile at his confidence.

“Olivia Cohen.” 

Sienna chimed in. “Hey Bryce, where’s the rest of the gang?”

“They’ll be here soon. Went off campus for breakfast.”

“Wait. You two know each other? And there’s a gang? How late am I?” 

“Relax Liv. We all got here way too early and bonded over our soon to be med school debt.” 

“Liv? Nicknames already?”

Bryce winked at her. “I work fast.”

Soon, the rest of the gang arrived but before introductions could be made, the Dean, Dr. Paul Rothman took the stage and a hush settled over the entire crowd.  

He started to speak. “This is the beginning for you. The four years you spend here will be the best and worst of your life. More will be demanded of you than you’ve ever experienced. You will be pushed to your limits and your job here is to soak every ounce of knowledge like a sponge. But, medicine is never limited to what is taught to you. You must be able to think for yourself and use what is taught to you as a guide and not a rule book. The human body is unpredictable. You must be willing to alter and adapt yourself to groove with it.

Some of you will buckle under the pressure; some of you will quit.  But some…some of you will thrive. 

This is your starting line. This is your arena. How well you play? That’s up to you.”

As soon as the speech was over, the students looked around familiarizing themselves with their competition. 

Olivia turned to her right and she saw him regarding her with his piercing blue eyes, almost as if he was assessing her threat level. A smirk formed on both their faces at the same time, like they were thinking the same thing…

Game on.

Chapter 2: Rookie Mistakes

[hhhhhhhappycow]

Prince of Tennis 2019 Hunger Games AU:

(Aka something I half-daydreamed after reading the Hunger Games prequel and watching the Prince of Tennis live action series):

When 15 year old Lu Xia volunteers as the tribute for District 4, even the peacekeepers are bewildered as to whether he can do that. After all, he spent the majority of his childhood in the Capitol with his mother. However he was born in District 4 and returned there the year before to live with his father in the Victor's Village, and so they allow it.

People talk, as they always do, wondering whether this was why he returned to them at all, why he kept to himself and always seemed to be training for something. It was.

The 15 year old boy he took the place of, Ah Mu, sobs with relief and gratitude and sorrow for this stranger who has certainly saved his life.

His father, the famed Victor, Lu Xiangqian, only watches in silence as his son walks toward the stage. There is no pride in his face, only terror.

Next they call the female tribute, and nobody steps forward for Qi Ying as she moves towards the stage, dwarfed by all those around her. She knows she doesn't stand a chance.

Lu Xiangqian is silent as he accompanies his son on the journey to the Capitol. Although he does not say anything, it is clear that this brings back memories of his own Reaping, 20 years previously, when he was just an unknown boy from an impoverished family, and not yet an underdog success story lauded by the Capitol. He has not been there in years, had returned to District 4 shortly after marrying and remained there even when his Capitol wife left him, taking their infant son with her, to return to her home. He is met with cheers and screams in the streets.

Also accompanying them is Qi Na, Qi Ying’s aunt and a fellow previous Victor. She won her own games two years after Lu Xiangqian, and although not quite as beloved a figure as he is, she too is welcomed in the Capitol. In spite of the quiet life she has enjoyed since her own games in the Victor’s Village of District 4, she takes it upon herself to mentor both Lu Xia and Qi Ying, determined that one of these small children will make it out alive. Still, her heart breaks every time she looks at them, realizing she will at some point likely have to make the choice between saving her niece and saving her former mentor and friend’s son.

Lu Xiangqian cannot bring himself to mentor his own son, and he knows that Lu Xia would resist all attempts for him to do so. Instead he spends time talking with the others at the training centre, giving tips when he knows Lu Xia is listening in. In particular, he finds himself bonding with a plucky young boy from District 8, Qiao Chen, who somewhat reminds him of himself.

Despite Qi Na’s advice for them to make allies, Lu Xia keeps to himself, and Qi Ying sticks close to his side. He makes no effort to befriend her, but he does not send her away either.

During training, they meet some of the other tributes.

Mu Siyang is the Career tribute from District 2, although he is not the standard Career as Lu Xia thinks of them. Siyang trained along with several other boys from his year, and managed to best them all. At 17, despite being a year younger than is usual for volunteers, the mentors from District 2 believed him to be far more capable than any of their 18 year old trainees, and so prompted him to step forward. Siyang, who had long since accepted that he would one day be reaped, merely did as he had been asked, with little complaint. He is tall and strong and by far the favorite to win, even favored by the Head Game-maker's own son, Ji Jingwu. His one weakness, which he hides from the tributes, is an old arm injury that occasionally acts up. Like Lu Xia, he largely keeps to himself, although he seems willing to train with others when they approach him.

Another unusual choice for a Career- and also a favorite for victory- is 17 year old Zhuo Zhi, from District 1. Similar to Siyang, he was supposed to volunteer in the following year, at 18. However, at the Reaping, it was his younger brother's name that they called, and the 18 year old who was supposed to volunteer- Guan Yue- remained silent, knowing that Zhuo Zhi would take his place. Lu Xia immediately marks him, aside from Siyang, as the toughest competition. Zhuo Zhi is careful not to practice his skills in front of the others, and there are rumours- supported by his high scores from the Game-makers- that he has no weaknesses. He seems to spend time with Siyang the most, seeking out his company and joking in an interview that they were both clearly fated to be in the games together this year rather than the following year.

Yan Zhiming, an 18 year old from District 3, is seemingly omnipresent in the training arena. He watches his competitors train with a sharp gaze, gathering data on all of his opponents. He takes the time to learn all of their strengths and weaknesses. It is only when Zhang Baiyang from District 7, tired of being watched, snaps at him to actually pick up some skills while he can or his data isn't going to be of any use in the arena, that he realizes he needs to learn to put his information to use.

Although not a Career, and despite only being 16, Zhang Baiyang is another favorite to win, strong and steely and determined. The only problem is he does not do so well with interviews, acting sullen and withdrawn in a way that comes across as sulky rather than arrogant. He puts maximum effort into training, although he himself does not seem confident in his ability to win. When Yan Zhiming approaches him with the offer of an alliance, he is reluctant to accept, but ultimately agrees after a seeming change of heart. Neither of them know how long it will last.

Qiao Chen, also aged 16, is from District 8 and is considered more of a dark horse in the competition. While he does not have the strength of the Careers or Baiyang, he is agile and has high endurance. His cheery attitude also endears him, both to the viewers and other contestants. Although not Baiyang, who gets fed up with Qaio Chen following him and trying to copy his strength exercises. At the prompting of Lu Xiangqian, he attempts to ally himself with both Lu Xia and Qi Ying, trying to earn their trust. Lu Xia remains suspicious that this is either just a ploy or that his father is orchestrating it solely for his benefit.

He Xinglong, 18, is from District 11 and is considered another dark horse. In interviews he is mild-mannered and friendly, but when talk turns to family, his face turns hard and he announces that he promised his father he would come home, and that he intends to keep that promise. He is up there in terms of raw strength, although in the training sessions he spends more time working with the paints and learning to camouflage and hide himself. Asides from Qiao Chen, he is the only one Lu Xia may consider as a potential ally.

While not a favorite to win by any means, it is not considered outside the realm of possibilities for Chi Dayong, an 18 year old from District 5, to emerge victorious. He is an all-rounder, strong and intelligent, although he is somewhat slow and tends to trust others perhaps too quickly. To the surprise of many, Siyang seems to befriend him, becoming the only person other than Zhuo Zhi (and occasionally Yan and Lu Xia) that Siyang speaks with. He seems to be aware of the fact that he will not win, and is simply striving to stay alive for as long as possible.

Despite the rumours and the fact that the girl from his home of District 6 is, Tang Jiale, also aged 18, is not a morphling addict. His twitchiness comes from nerves only, as like Dayong he knows he is unlikely to live. While he is nimble and quick, he is not necessarily strong and he lacks stamina. He becomes close to Dayong over the course of their training, and by the time the two head into the arena they have a strong pact: If they're going out, they're going out together, at least.

Huang Jing and Ma Xiuwen are from District 9 and District 10 respectively, and deep down they both know they will not last long. Still, both boys are just shy of 15, and are in denial about their odds, doing their best in training to gain skills and strength in spite of the fact that their mentors have already abandoned them as lost causes. Together they copy the moves that Siyang does, trying to emulate him, and even Lu Xiangqian and Qi Na offer them advice. Huang Jing reassures Xiuwen that their training will pay off, that the two of them will make it right to the end, but he knows his words are empty.

The first time that anybody pays attention to Qi Ying is during the interview stage. She departs from her script and speaks of the atrocities, both awaiting them and in their home districts. Her speech is heart-rending poignant and heavily edited by the time it reaches the Capitol.

Lu Xia does not say much in his interviews, only stating that he is here to beat his father's records, although he does, to the surprise of many, defend Qi Ying.

Jiale and Dayong drum up some popularity in the interviews, with their clear affection for each other being viewed as an inspirational friendship by many. They both secretly wonder how much of it is built on the need to survive.

Another popular duo, for a different reason, are Baiyang and Qiao Chen. Their squabbling during training comes to a head during the interviews, and members of the Capitol gossip about the potential for a passionate showdown between the two once they enter the arena.

Siyang's interview only gains him more respect: He is introspective, intelligent, and calm, speaking about the event that is about to unfold with sorrow but also a resignation that is mature beyond his years.

Zhuo Zhi plays up the mysterious angle, bantering with the host (and Jiale, in an unexpected friendship that some of the audience love) and smirking throughout. The only time he cracks slightly is when his brother, who he volunteered for, is mentioned: That is when his determination to get home is truly revealed.

Lu Xia is slowly starting to realize that winning the Hunger Games may be harder than he initially thought.

[baepop]

PRIVATE // 1

You meet a captivating stranger whose sudden appearance stirs the unrequited feelings of your best friend.

Word Count: 7.5k

Pairing: Jungkook x You x Jennie

Genre: Slight angst/fluff, slight smut (aka: the buildup)

A/N: Happy pride month bitches! Bisexual fic coming your way!

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12

Everything about Jennie was as proper as could be. Her shoes never seemed to scuff, not even the pair with the studs that she loved so much; her pleated skirts never dared utter a single wrinkle and if you ever thought to see a hair out of place, even after a session of hot yoga, well…you’d thought wrong. When Jennie first started coming around, you swore she was some park avenue princess with the way she insisted on paying for meals and buying you things without having known each other long. You two had met through a friend of a friend at a mellow house party but never exchanged social media or anything. You just couldn’t see yourself befriending her, preferring instead to focus on your studies for your senior year of college. Making it to these parties occasionally and chatting up strangers for a while was all you really had time for. So it was much to your surprise running into Jennie at a café on campus that you frequented weekday afternoons whenever you didn’t have class or work. She had tapped you on your shoulder then embraced your figure once you turned around to see who was invading your personal space. That day she had on a canary yellow peacoat and her hair smelled of coconut, two things you’d noticed as her arms lingered around your frame for a beat too long. The next day she wore a mauve peacoat that perfectly complimented the blush on her cheeks. Next was periwinkle and then taupe before you finally asked her why she was suddenly such a fan of the coffee on your campus seeing as how she wasn’t a student at the university.

“Well, I…I’m not actually. The coffee here is subpar and don’t even get me started on the tea selection.” You stared at her with a blank expression until she defeatedly sighed and placed her mug on the table. “You didn’t give me your number before you left Yoongi’s party. And when I asked him for it, he refused to give it to me and instead told me I could probably find you here.” You both sat there staring at each other for what seemed like minutes before you gave up, breaking eye contact to sip on your coffee and turn to the next page in your psychology book. At that point you didn’t care why she wanted to befriend you so bad, but you also didn’t care enough to push her away, so you two sat there in comfortable silence as you went over this week’s cognitive dissonance chapter. You figured you had made a good impression at the party and she probably didn’t have much going on to keep herself busy.

It didn’t take long for Jennie to weasel her way into being your best friend despite your callous indifference of her incessant presence in the coffee house. It also wasn’t a coveted title to obtain as you hadn’t been a social butterfly lately. It took a good amount of begging before she convinced you to sign up for yoga classes with her, held on the evenings 4 floors below her penthouse, only a month after she began visiting you on campus. At that point, you hadn’t minded her company so much anymore as you got to know the goofy yet intelligent aspects of her personality that vibed well with your own. If you were being truthful with yourself, you were happy Jennie had managed to become a good friend of yours because things had gotten stale and lonely having only your schoolwork and job to focus on. Still, however, Jennie remained an enigma to you as generally people of her stature didn’t go out of their way to befriend someone like you, especially when you’ve made them work for it. One night, you agreed to go up to her place for a glass of wine after yoga and that’s when all the walls finally came down. The façade of her perfect image came tumbling down as she admitted to feeling immense pressure to be who everyone else thought she was. She also admitted to finally feeling seen that night you two met at Yoongi’s party when you complimented the song she played on the stereo. Everyone was complaining about her music choices being too mellow to dance to but once you had arrived at the party you loved the strum of the guitar you heard as you sipped on your drink and decided to compliment whoever it was that was playing the song. The memory of her babbling into her glass for 45 minutes as her top knot loosened and drooped over her forehead was a warm one that never quite left you. And it was also the same night where you started to finally let her in.

***

“Let’s get pizza.” Jennie looked up from scrolling on her endless Instagram feed at the sound of her stomach rumbling.

Without looking up from your phone, you shook your head no and replied, “Nah, sorry I have to tutor that kid in a bit, remember?” Jennie sucked her teeth and solemnly went back to her phone screen.

“Why did you agree to do that anyway?” she whined childishly.

“You know I could really use the money Jen. A girls got bills.” You sighed as you scrolled past a beautiful pair of boots advertised on your timeline.

“I will literally buy you whatever you want, you know that.” Jennie rolled her eyes as her face settled into a pout while leaning her head into her palm.

“I know, and that’s the problem.” You chuckled bitterly. “I’ve got way too many family members born next month so I need to save up some money for presents. You can come shopping with me if you want.”

“Ugh okay, but I’m not letting you drag me into another thrift shop! Those places give me the heebie-jeebies! Who knows what ---”

The alarm on your phone signaling the tutoring session approaching interrupted Jennie mid-sentence. You shot her an apologetic look as her pout became even more pronounced. “We can get pizza when I’m done. Gotta go for now though! Text ya later.” You swung your bookbag across your shoulder and swiftly entered the elevator that would take you to the main floor. As you descended through all 21 floors, you recalled how uncomfortable it was to hang out at her place in the beginning stages of your budding friendship. Now you’ve gotten so used to the obscure paintings on the walls and expensive decorations that you wondered if it was you who was making space for her eccentricity in your life or if it was her lavish lifestyle that was making way for boring old you. Just then the doors swung open into the hustle and bustle of the lobby, effectively interrupting your train of thought as you blended into the chaos of busy people.

 ***

“Jeon Jungkook?” You bent over to peer at the brown-haired boy who was huddled over his laptop’s screen. This café on campus was one of the less popular ones, which made it easier to assume this boy was your tutee as he was the only one at the café apart from a girl hunched over a table lightly snoring. He peered up at you in a double-take then settled on the screen of his laptop as he ferociously jabbed on the directional keys of the keyboard.

“Yeah, that’s me…are you the…tutor?” His distractedness during your introduction confused you before you glanced at his computer and realized he was in the middle of an online SMITE match. Normally you would be content in waiting for him to finish before you could start the session but the idea of missing out on pizza annoyed you. You decided to close his laptop shut and keep your finger on top of it until he was forced to give you his undivided attention.

“Hi! I’m (Y/N), your English tutor. If you don’t mind, I have plans later so I’d like to get started as soon as possible.” You plastered a wide smile on your face. The boy, too stunned to respond, sat there frozen as you dropped your book bag onto the chair and began taking out a notebook and a pencil.

“Sorry.” You heard him mumble under his breath but pretended not to hear it to avoid an awkward moment. Instead, you smiled at him again and asked exactly what he needed help with. “We’re reading this book in class right now and there’s a book report due next week. The language is really obscure, and I don’t even know how to begin analyzing the context.” You picked up his copy of the book and fanned the worn out pages.

“Well, lucky for you this is one of my favorite books! So I can actually help you a lot with your report.” You handed the book back to him with a smile and wink. Jungkook instantly blushed and chuckled while rubbing the back of his neck.

“Thanks in advance, I have a feeling I’ll be needing a lot of your help.” Jungkook’s quick sweep of your body didn’t go unnoticed but nonetheless, you decided to dive into the tutoring session. It was hard to ignore the butterflies in your stomach throughout as you noticed more and more how boyishly handsome he was and what a nice smile he had. The possibility of him being into you made it harder to concentrate and made you blush when you accidentally had skin to skin contact while taking a paper from his hands. Being flustered was extremely unlike you, but you credited your sudden lameness to your year-long lack of sex. Taking a deep breath gave you a moment of clarity and the resolve to finish the session as professionally as possible.

“So…when can I see you again? For tutoring I mean?” Jungkook tried hard to stay as nonchalant as possible but his crooked smile directed downwards as he packed up his belongings gave it away. During the session you realized he didn’t need much help at all and would most likely only need the one day of tutoring. Nonetheless, you decided to take the bait, but not without making him work for it.

“If you feel the need for more tutoring sessions you can schedule an appointment on the school’s website.” With that, you swiftly zipped up your book bag and headed out of the coffee shop.

***

It only took a couple days to receive Jungkook’s request for a follow-up tutoring session set for Thursday of next week. You chuckled in the bright glow of your computer’s screen that shown brightly in your dark room. When you clicked on the notification to expand the details of his request, you noticed the location preference was set to his dorm room. Your light chuckle turned into a breathy laugh. This kid had balls, you had to admit. You kept waiting for his cheekiness to rub you the wrong way sober you up but the more signs he showed of interest the more you were inclined to entertain them. It wasn’t like you to let the other person take charge in your relationship, preferring instead to be completely transparent from the beginning and taking joy in asking the other out. You didn’t care much for games and titles but the one of “dominant” given to you by your freshman year friends was not lost on you. You, instead, chose to embrace it and accept that your ‘take charge’ attitude would turn off undesirable suitors and attract the kind of people you could actually be with. You leaned back in your chair and sipped on your tea before hitting the “accept” button and shutting off your computer.

That night you tried to fall asleep but too many thoughts of your upcoming graduation, approaching due dates for schoolwork and a very cute brunette junior kept you up until dusk. Just when you finally started to drift off to sleep, you felt a soft dip in the bed that instantly woke you.

“Sorry, sorry...” Jennie whispered as she got under the covers. You looked at her incredulously before she responded again, “I couldn’t sleep and your bed is comfy. Also, you left your keys attached to the door again. You should really be more careful (Y/N).��� You hummed in agreement, too tired to address her forced entry into your apartment and settling to be big spoon for the night.

The obnoxious sounds of your phone’s alarm awoke both of you with a start. Jennie grumbled and pressed a pillow to her ears. “It is an ungodly hour to be awake! Turn it off!” You immediately grabbed your phone and hopped out of bed to start getting ready for work. “What are you doing?” Jennie rubbed her eyes and squinted at you through the golden morning rays shining through the discombobulated shutters on your bedroom window.

“I have work in an hour. We can’t all be sleeping princesses until noon.” You stuck your tongue out at her before beginning to brush your teeth. Jennie rolled her eyes and went back to bed. She was already long used to your poking fun at her lazy and rich lifestyle, choosing to simply ignore your quips.

You managed to get ready at a record-breaking speed of 20 minutes. As you slipped the last shoe on, you peered at Jennie whose body lay impossibly still under the covers with her shiny black hair spilling out onto your pillow like plant roots. You decided to tip toe over to check if she was already sleeping. You didn’t want to wake her, so you settled for moving her bangs out of her eyes and whispering “I’ll see you after work” before heading out for the day. You could’ve sworn you noticed her blushing but figured it was all in your imagination.

 ***

Working at the boutique wasn’t your favorite thing in the world but the pay was decent. You had started working there your sophomore year after seeing a “help wanted” ad in the window of a small men’s formal suiting shop. You were at the downtown fashion district with your usual group of freshman year friends killing time and decided there wasn’t any harm in filling out an application at the counter. The job had looked easy enough, but after getting hired you soon learned differently. You realized just how difficult it was to take charge of older men in conversations about men’s suiting, and even more so dressing them. It took a lot of guts and studying men’s fashion before you grew into your own at the shop. The effort you started putting into your job along with increasingly difficult classes had you falling out of contact with those same friends. You had to admit that the thought of growing apart from your friends was much less painful than you thought it might be freshman year. Your likes and goals were entirely different by now, but most importantly, you were becoming someone you liked and respected.

That afternoon after leaving Jennie in your bed, you found yourself focusing on steaming the leg on a pair of gray linen pants when suddenly you heard the bell at the top of the entrance ring signaling a customer entering the store. You immediately turned off the steamer and rushed to the counter to greet them only to be dumbstruck at the sight in front of you. Jungkook and an older man entered the store amidst conversation. Your utter confusion rendered you speechless as they looked around the store for help.

“Ah, young lady, do you work here?” The older man addressed you kindly across the store.

You looked between him and Jungkook for a moment before your professionalism kicked in. “Yes! Hi, sorry! I was busy steaming and didn’t see you guys. Welcome to Suits 4 U, how can I assist you guys today?” You kept your eyes trained on the older gentleman but didn’t miss how Jungkook’s mouth hung open the entire time. Did he know you worked there before showing up or was it just a mere coincidence? Either way, the excitement of seeing him unexpectedly before your tutoring session gave you a tiny thrill masked under your polite smile.

“Well, I’m here with my son to get him fitted for his first suit. He has an internship coming up this summer at a finance company and we need him to look his best.” The man chuckled while patting Jungkook’s shoulder. His eyes formed crescent moons while smiling which instantly disarmed you. “Is Raphael here? I’ve been coming to him for years; this shop is just great.”

You laughed and tucked some hair behind your ear. “Thank you so much! He’s not in right now but, I can help you out myself if that’s okay. Your son looks to be about a 32 waist and 34 inseams?” The older man nodded in astonishment and looked towards Jungkook to confirm.

“Uh…yeah that’s exactly right.” Jungkook rubbed his neck in embarrassment.

“Don’t be shy, kook! You let the nice lady fit you for a good suit and I’ll be right here if you need me.” You and the man exchanged smiles before walking around the counter to show Jungkook to the fitting area behind the curtains. You helped him up onto the platform in front of 3 adjacent mirrors before busying yourself looking for a style of suit in his sizes that would flatter him.

Jungkook cleared his throat before speaking, “So…I didn’t know you had two jobs. Must be rough during your senior year.”

Without missing a beat, you responded, “How did you know I was a senior?”

“You mentioned it in your Facebook status.” Jungkook quickly replied with a straight face.

“So, you stalked me?” You laughed incredulously.

“More like researched. You’re a pretty private person so I didn’t find much if that makes you feel better.” Jungkook smiled widely which made you instinctively blush. Too flustered to respond you simply handed him a white button-down shirt. He immediately removed his plain black t-shirt and began buttoning the white one at an incredibly slow pace. You caught his eyes in the center mirror and realized he saw you ogling at his pecks. You immediately turned around as he continued watching you through the mirror with a shit-eating grin.

“Here, put these on.” You handed him a matching black chino suit with a European tailoring finish. Jungkook hadn’t stopped staring at you as he removed his pants and dressed himself. You were determined not to swoon at his gorgeous physique in front of him, choosing instead to jut your hip out and cross your arms while tapping your foot. “You take forever to get dressed.”

“I could use your help.”

“With?”

“Tucking my shirt in, I don’t want to wrinkle it.”

You scoffed and proceeded to gingerly tuck his shirt around his waist. You didn’t miss the way his abs reflexively twitched as your hands got to the front of his pants. He put the blazer on at once then adjusted his cuffs in the mirror. You had to admit that the way the pants tapered in on his ankles and how the blazer did the same around his waist was very flattering. You absent-mindedly brushed lint off his shoulder and brushed out the wrinkles on the arms while admiring your work in the mirror. As your eyes made their way up his frame you caught his cocky ass grin again which only made you roll your eyes. “What now, Jeon? What is so funny to you?”

“Just admit you’re into me.” You froze for a second before responding.

“Excuse me?”

“Oh, you heard me pretty well. I think that you’re into me and the way you act all tough in front of me really turns me on, so I’d like to take you out on a date sometime.”

Before you could reply, Jungkook’s dad appeared from behind the curtains and whistled at the sight of his son in a tailored suit. “Wow, that looks really good. If you’re okay with it Kook I think we’ll take it!”

“I don’t know dad, what do you think (Y/N)? Does this look good on me?” Jungkook bit his bottom lip, looking you in the eyes and daring you to confirm his beliefs. The audacity this guy had to call you out had you at a loss for words for the second time tonight. You settled for nodding and smiling.

You decided to wait behind the counter for Jungkook to undress, making small talk with his dad to pass the time. His love for his son was evident in the way he spoke so highly of him to a mere stranger. The thought warmed your heart. In a matter of 5 minutes, you were waving them both out of the door with Jungkook’s new suit in a garment bag. The remainder of your shift went by painfully slow without the silky haired boy entertaining you. You briefly considered canceling your upcoming tutoring session since it was evident the professionalism between you two was shot after this afternoon. But who were you kidding? There was no way you were going to let him get the better of you, it just wasn’t in you to submit.

 ***

You snapped out of your reverie at the feeling of a piece of popcorn bouncing off your cheek. As you turned your head to look at Jennie, several popcorn pieces fell out of your hair and onto the shaggy white rug you were sitting Indian style on. It was movie night at Jennie’s apartment, but the foreign film wasn’t captivating your interest, not when you had Jeon’s abs on your mind.

“Hey what gives?!” You started to flick pieces of popcorn back at Jennie as you found them in the carpet. She giggled while swatting them away from her face.

“Watching this movie was YOUR idea and you’re not even paying attention! You’ve been all daydreamy lately. Are you going to tell me what’s up or not?” Jennie set her bowl of popcorn aside and crossed her arms, giving you a pointed look. When it comes to Jennie, there is no escape once the interrogation starts. This wouldn’t be the first time you were under fire for withholding information from her. Despite preferring to be a private person, you never minded being completely transparent with Jennie. With time, you came to understand how loyal and trustworthy she was. Being left in the dark was just something that always bothered her, which you could understand. You sighed as you turned away from the television to face her.

“You know that guy I tutored the other day?”

“Yea?”

“I kinda want to fuck him.” Jennie froze for a second as she searched for something in your eyes.

“Okay…um…well, does he reciprocate your feelings?’

“I think he’s made it pretty obvious yeah. I just don’t know though, I’ve never been into younger guys but he’s…really hot.” You laughed as a blush overtook your cheeks. Your admission embarrassed you, even in front of your best friend. Jennie bit her lip as she laid horizontally on the couch staring at the ceiling.

“Do you have a picture of him?”

“Hmm…I can show you his Instagram.” Admitting you already perused his social media made you further embarrassed. “Before you judge me, it’s been a really long time, okay?” You scrolled on his page for a bit before finding a good enough picture of him to show her then reluctantly handed your phone over. After analyzing the selfie of him on his bed, Jennie went back to his page and started looking at other pictures of him: ones of him in his baseball uniform, laughing on a couch with a few of his friends, dancing in a goofy manner to some pop song and the list goes on. After a minute, she rolled her eyes and handed the phone back to you. Her reaction had you quirking an eyebrow as you grabbed it from her hands. “…What?”

“Oh, nothing.” Jennie closed her eyes and intertwined her hands over here stomach, intent on not giving anything away. You lunged at her sides to unleash a flurry of tickles.

“Tell me, wench!” Your consistent tickling had her hollering at the top of her lungs and squirming to escape your grip.

“I’ll never say, peasant!” You decided to straddle her midsection and pin her flailing legs down,  holding her wrists to do the same.

“Jennie Ruby Jane. Tell me, NOW!” Your long brown hair fell over your shoulder and tickled her cheek. She turned her head to the side as a final act of rebellion which only spurred your torturing on further. You began to hock a loogie dramatically which earned a valley of squeals from the pale girl.

“Okay! Okay!” You chuckled at the sign of her defeat and sat back on her hips, letting her wrists go. She sat up on her forearms pouting up at you. “You’re so extra!” the girl shouted with amusement in her eyes. After a moment of silence, she spoke, “I just think he looks like a fuck boy. It’s not going to go anywhere between you guys.” You let out a breathy laugh at her admission.

“No shit, I just want some dick!”

“Then why are you getting blushy and daydreamy if he’s only a dick to you?” She challenged you.

“Ummmm, maybe because it’s been a while and it’s nice to get some male attention during these barren times?” You rolled your eyes and climbed off of her.

“Yeah, whatever (Y/N). Keep telling yourself that.” Jennie returned your eye roll with her own and fully sat up on the couch.

“Are we going to watch this movie or not!? You’re making it hard to focus!” You continued on with your dramatic act but failed as a smiled tugged at your lips.

“OMG, you are unbelievable!” Both of you laughed and resumed your movie, only one of you being content to put that conversation behind.

***

Your Thursday afternoon shift at work dragged on because of how much you were looking forward to the tutoring session with Jungkook set for right after. Your finger drumming on the front counter and persistent glances at the clock earned some questions from the shop owner which you easily shrugged off as some trip you were looking forward to after work. As soon as the clock struck six you grabbed your jean jacket off of the coat rack and caught the shuttle back to campus. The junior dorms were just a stop before the coffee shop stop, so you already knew where you were going. You decided to just wear your work clothes paired with a denim jacket since the tight-fitting black dresses you wore as a work uniform were nice anyway. Just before you arrived at the lobby of the dorms, you caught your reflection in a car window and decided to check how you looked. Nothing unusual stood out. Your long curly hair swung just above your behind and your mascara and eyebrow gel still held on strong, the only two things you allowed on your face since the number of times you rubbed your face during class made it virtually unrealistic to wear a full face of makeup. Because of that, you settled for wearing shorter clothing that would show off your long legs. Feeling sexy in your own skin without putting way too much effort into your image was something you learned was the perfect combination to feeling happy with yourself, which was hard to do as you were generally always the tallest woman in the room. It took a long time to build self-confidence, but you were happy with where you currently were in your life. With a deep breath to calm your excitement, you headed into the lobby where Jungkook was already waiting for you. He looked up from his phone and immediately spotted you entering the building. His eyes lingered on your legs covered in sheer black tights before meeting your eyes with his own dark orbs. You felt butterflies at the instant your gazes locked and held for a few seconds. You decided to breakaway first, looking down with a small smile and waving.

“Hey, Jungkook. You ready to study?” Jungkook simpered as he looked down towards his feet with his hands in his pockets.

“Yeah I am, but it looks like you aren’t. Where’s your book bag and why are you dressed like that?” He gestured towards your subtle cleavage. You crossed your arms and gaped at him, confused as to why he was questioning you instead of complimenting you. Jungkook watched your mouth open and close before he chuckled and began heading towards his room. Luckily his room was on the first floor so there wouldn’t be an awkward elevator ride. As you walked behind him you pressed your cold hands onto your hot blushing cheeks wondering if you misread this whole situation. “Thanks for agreeing to come to the dorms this time. This was the only time I was free to get tutored, but I couldn’t leave the dorms tonight. I hope it didn’t make you uncomfortable.” His words made you all the more confused. Surely he didn’t feel the need to pretend this was anything other than a hookup, especially since he had already gotten you to come without much of a chase? You didn’t understand what he meant until he unlocked the door to his suite and a small child bombarded his legs, clinging on for dear life.

“Kookie! Kookie! You took forever!” Jungkook smiled and patted the child’s head before picking him up so you could enter into the suite.

“I was only gone a few minutes! Anyways, what do you say to a pretty lady?” Jungkook laughed as the small boy buried his head into the crook of his neck with shyness.

“…Hewwo…” You smiled at the child and greeted him back before looking up at Jungkook in utter confusion.

“I’m babysitting for my parents tonight while they celebrate their 20th anniversary. This is my little brother, Sammy. He’s a real good kid and agreed to quietly color in his coloring book while I study, right bud?” The young boy nodded without looking up at him, clearly displeased to have a stranger take his big brother’s attention away. You smiled sweetly at Jungkook to show him everything was okay with you. It was only after he placed his brother on the floor in front of his crayons that crippling embarrassment settled red and hot behind your face and prickled at your scalp. You had misread the situation after all, and even worse, assumed Jungkook was just some fuck boy looking to fake being serious about his studies in order to fuck tutor girls. He wouldn’t have been the first one you ran into, but it was now clear that you shouldn’t have lumped him into the same category. Swallowing your pride and shame, you placed your jacket on the back of his chair and pulled another one up to the desk to start the session. For about an hour, you helped Jungkook finalize his book report and put the finishing touches on his powerpoint presentation about his report. Once you both looked out of the window and saw how late it was getting, you decided to wrap things up. Turning to Sammy who was busy passionately coloring an orange elephant, you smiled and squatted near the page.

“Ready to spend some time with Kookie, Sammy? You looked up at Jungkook and winked, appreciating the way that the nickname coming from you flustered Jungkook. The young boy looked up from his art and nodded.

“Bye-bye! Um…”

“(Y/N), how do you do.” You talked in a funny voice that made Sammy giggle. Standing up and stretching your arms once more, you looked towards Jungkook who held your jacket for you to take. “Thanks. So…good luck with your presentation.” You kicked yourself at the lame way you chose to say goodbye but decided it was best to cut your losses and avoid further embarrassment.

“Thanks, I’ll walk you out.” Both of you headed out into the hallway and walked slowly towards the lobby in silence. After a few long moments, Jungkook finally broke the quiet, “So about that date…. What do you say?” You turned to him in disbelief before looking back down at your shoes. You had thought when he asked you on a date back at the shop that it was his way of getting you into bed. Once again you felt shame for being such a pessimistic pervert.

“I didn’t know you were serious about that.” You admitted.

“Yeah, I figured with the way you showed up to our study session.” Jungkook laughed as he playfully pulled on the hem of your dress so that it slapped your thigh when he let go. You pouted and stared straight ahead, unable to defend yourself. “Don’t get me wrong, I’d have loved to show you a good time tonight, but that’s not really my style. Especially with intellectual women. I want to show you a different kind of good time, at least at first. You turned toward his face in time to catch him biting his bottom lip. It was as if his mouth had a direct connection to your lower abdomen, feeling that magnetic pull between you two that you couldn’t shake. Part of you felt relieved to know it wasn’t all in your head, and the other part of you was determined to redeem yourself.

As you opened the door to the outside, you paused and swung your hair over your shoulder to look at him briefly. “Pick me up this weekend. I want to go see that new DC movie, you can take me to the movies and then we’ll get ice cream. DM me on Instagram so we can agree on a time.” With that, you closed the door behind you and headed towards the shuttle stop, content with yourself for not sneaking a peak behind you. When did you become so lame in front of guys? You idly wondered about the effects that lack of sex could have on the psyche of woman the entire shuttle ride towards your apartment.

***

You woke up to the thin rays of sunlight peering through the drawn blinds of your bedroom window. They illuminated Jennie’s face with a healthy golden glow, showcasing the subtle rhythmic movement of her chest as she slept. You felt a wave of affection at the thought of her being extra careful last night getting into your bed so as not to wake you. You idly wondered why she preferred to share this bed with you when she had a big beautiful canopy bed at her even more beautiful apartment. Then again, you remembered how lonely she must have felt when moving here without friends or family. You cuddled closer to her as the big spoon, wrapping your right arm around her torso and pulling her into your chest. The slight movement woke Jennie for a few seconds before she hugged your arm tightly and went back to sleep, taking you into unconsciousness with her.

You awoke a few hours later, well into the afternoon in the same position you had fallen asleep in only this time, Jennie’s snoring was loud enough to quake the glass of water on your nightstand. Your raspy chuckle was barely audible as you stared at her mouth that hung open while she violently slept. Careful so as not to wake her, you gingerly slid your arm out of her grasp and pulled the covers off of your bodies since the heat was making you a little sweaty. Your eyes bulged while taking in the view south of the bed. Jennie had taken her pants off before climbing into bed and was only sporting a bright red G-string. You forced yourself to look anywhere other than her perfect bottom until your heart stopped beating as fast as it was. What the hell, Jennie? You cursed yourself for giving her a key to your apartment after her initial forced entry. The lack of sex is really getting to you, you thought as you carefully covered her back up and climbed out of bed. Suddenly, you heard the snoring stop and a few light moans coming from the bed.

“Where’d you go?”, Jennie softly called out as she rubbed her eyes.

“In the bathroom!” You reply as best you can while brushing your teeth. Jennie groans then rolls over, pulling the covers on her further.

“Come back…”

“Sorry, I overslept enough as it is. I have some stuff I need to get done before my date tonight!” You replied in a sing-song voice before spitting the foam out of your mouth and rinsing your toothbrush in the sink.

“Your WHAT!?”, Jennie immediately sat up and ripped the covers off of her.

“Yeah, sorry I totally forgot to update you. I didn’t end up fucking that guy. Instead, he asked me out on a date! I’m actually excited to go, I feel like such a freshman.” Your giddy mood seemed to frustrate Jennie even more. She quietly got out of bed, pulled her pants on, grabbed her purse from your nightstand and left your apartment.

“Jennie?!” You called after her but the only thing you got in response was your door slamming loudly. You sucked your teeth and continued washing your face. You didn’t know why she was in such a bad mood. Sure, you didn’t tell her about how things progressed with Jungkook but it wasn’t exactly her business. This is why I haven’t dated any girls on campus recently, girls can be so moody sometimes. You took a deep breath and headed into your room to get changed, determined not to let Jennie’s childishness ruin your day.

***

Your date with Jungkook had been going well so far. He picked you up from your apartment 5 minutes early on foot. You two walked to the shuttle stop in silence since there really wasn’t much to talk about. You two had only just met and didn’t know much about each other or shared any experiences yet. You hated first dates for this reason, preferring instead to just hook up without the need to feign a relationship or only date someone you’re already friends with. You had gotten good at small talk since working at the suit shop had you conversing with all kinds of people regularly. But it still wasn’t thrilling nor any less awkward. Once you both had exhausted all the commonplace questions like “How was your day” and “What’s your favorite color”, you both sat on the shuttle on the way to the campus’ cinema in silence. Why had you agreed to this? You were really off your game at this point in time. You looked over at Jungkook and noticed him staring off into the distance looking quite alarmed. His pensive face made you giggle which snapped him out of his reverie.

“What?” He looked at you with a half-smile confused.

“Your face…you looked so…shook!” You let out in between laughs. His cheeks became tinted pink with an exasperated gasp.

“Not you too! My teammates make fun of me for it all the time! Ugh!” Jungkook complained with exaggerated exclamation. His eyes sparkled with amusement as he began tickling your sides for not taking him seriously. The guffaw that followed was obnoxious enough to catch the attention of surrounding students riding the shuttle. It was at that moment that Jungkook realized how ticklish you were, to his elation and your immediate embarrassment. You both settled into your seats immediately after meeting the eyes of annoyed riders but couldn’t contain your giggles and light shoving for the rest of the ride. Eventually, after sufficient physical contact, you two ended up walking off of the shuttle holding hands.

***

Jungkook’s lips ravaged your neck as you struggled to open the door to your apartment, fumbling your key on the lock. You eventually did open it and the door slammed backward into the adjacent wall as Jungkook reached your lips and leaned into you, holding you by the hips. Your hunger to taste him had been contagious as you had taken the opportunity that the light ‘goodnight’ peck he gave you on the lips in front of your apartment presented to start a make-out session. There was no way you would let it end that way after wanting him the entire date. He had been a perfect gentleman, waiting in line to get you a bunch of snacks at the concession stand while you held your seats, draping his jacket over your shoulders once the chill of the night set in, and bringing you all the way to your apartment even though it was past the junior dorms. And now, as he tugged on your bottom lip with his teeth while his hands held both sides of your face in the middle of your apartment, you were absolutely sure you wanted to go all the way with Jeon Jungkook. You slowly lead Jungkook to your bedroom without detaching your lips. Once his legs made contact with your bed you pushed him back onto it and climbed on top of him. You began kissing down his neck as your arms made a cage around his head. With his eyes closed and sporting a cocky smile, “Woah there (Y/N), aren’t we taking things a bit too fast?” A throaty chuckle escaped his lips as you reached his Adam's apple.

“Shut up, Jeon.” You moved back up to his lips and stuck your tongue into his mouth which he welcomed, swirling his tongue around yours in equal fervor. His fingers slid up into your hair and tightened their grip on your strands, pulling lightly but firmly so that your head moved backward, giving him access to your neck. As he sucked on your neck, you could feel a bulge forming in his pants. You decided to rub your clothed mound on his growing bulge while he kissed behind your ear.

“Don’t do that.” Jungkook let out a breathy whisper into your ear which made tingles run down your spine and had you heavily convulsing. You decided to rub even harder down onto his clothed member which was now rock hard. However, you couldn’t keep it up for too long as Jungkook was suddenly on top of you in one swift motion.

“You don’t like to listen, do you?” He stared at your lips as he interlocked your fingers together, holding your hands above your head on the bed.

“Not really, no” Your breathy reply brought back that crooked smile you were starting to love so much. In response, Jungkook lowered himself onto you and began rubbing the head of his bulge right around where your clit would be under your pants. You couldn’t help but writhe under him, struggling against his ironclad grip on your hands.

“You’ll get this…”, Jungkook bucked his hips roughly onto your mound, “…when I say you can.” You took his attempt to dominate you as a challenge, wrapping your legs around his waist to bring his member back onto you while biting your lip. Jungkook’s eyes rolled backward in brief pleasure before attacking your lips again with renewed passion. After a while, you were both breathless with puffy lips. Jungkook cleared his throat and moved back to look into your eyes. You both let out laughs as your chests heaved in unison. Jungkook looked down at your swollen lips and ran his thumbs across them before rolling over and climbing off of you. “I should go.” Too stunned to say anything, you watched him straighten his clothing and wipe his mouth.

“Ummm…did I do something wrong?” You asked as you sat up to look at him properly. Jungkook smiled and walked back over to the bed, bending over to place a brief kiss on your pink lips.

“Of course not, just practicing a little restraint. I want to do things right.” He smiled with crescent moon eyes before turning and exiting your apartment.

Do things, right?

You let out an exasperated sigh and sagged back onto the bed with one arm covering your eyes in frustration. Suddenly you heard something shift in your room which made you sit back up in alarm.

“Jungkook?” You searched your room for the source of the noise before your eyes locked with another pair of eyes peering through the slits of your closet door. You froze in utter fear as you realized someone was in your closet. Suddenly, the door opened and you screamed, chucking a pillow at the intruder because it was the closest thing to you. Jennie caught the pillow and held it to her chest, watching you warily.

“Hey (Y/N)…”

“Jennie!?”

“I can explain.”

“YOU PERVERT!!!!!!”

[ouidamforeman]

Gallifrey Audios Fic Rec

Since I read a lot more fanfiction than I used to I thought it’d be a good idea to make a rec list of my personal favorites! Heads up though because as anyone who has followed me for a while knows this is mostly Narvin/Leela (But not all! I like gen stuff and friendship shenanigans a lot too) so if you hate the ship or want a larger variety my rec list will be like a minefield, apologies. List is organized by rating, lowest to highest, and includes approximate word counts. Enjoy! Under a read more because it’s kind of long:

Time Lords are Bad at Feelings by @timelordsandkittens (NR) Notes: this is a fic about hugging and it’s the first Gallifrey story I ever bookmarked, years ago)

Reflections/Refractions by a_walking_shadow (G, 2k words) (Summary: It's always interesting, seeing what's different on every world connected to the Axis. Sometimes, the Gallifrey on the other side is so similar to their own it's almost painful. Sometimes, there aren't any similarities at all. Sometimes it's a perfect reflection, sometimes everything is slightly different, refracted. And sometimes, it's just completely bizarre.” aka “Someone posted a suggestion, somewhere, for a story idea: in s4, the Gallifrey gang end up on a version of Gallifrey which is basically what people think the planet is like, when they first get into New Who.)

The Candidate by weakinteraction (G, 4k words) (Summary: Romana's presidential campaign doesn't get off to the smoothest of starts when she is ambushed by an interviewer. Braxiatel is on hand to straighten things out.) Notes: a delightful and unusual mix of Gallifrey lore and canon that makes me very happy

Life Lessons by thetransgirlwhoneverwas (G, 800 words) (Summary: Narvin is facing death, and for the first time in his long life, he is truly afraid of it.) Notes: this is the “What does Brax think about Narvin losing his lives” fic everyone wants

The Hotel of Rassilon by Floptopus (G, 5k words) (Summary: The Gallifrey Gang (Minus that oily toad, Irving Braxiatel) have escaped from the rages of war and are now running a Bed and Breakfast as a family. However, the new guests at their little hotel clearly aren't all they claim to be... Sarah Jane Smith and her young friends are staying at a Bed and Breakfast as they investigate suspected alien activity in the surrounding area. However, most suspicious are the odd family of four that run the hotel…) Notes: Remember the silly self indulgent b&b AU/SJA crossover thing? This is the fic. Listen. Sometimes you just need corny Time War fix-it fic and this is it. It’s not even finished and I don’t care because I want to live here.

day after day (the show must go on) by clockworkouroboros (G, 2k words) (Summary: A post-Time War short story that explores what happens to them. Leela has been found, but Gallifrey is lost. Romana is trying to find out what happened to it.) Notes: @clockworkouroboros writes good things and also she’s my friend and I love her. This story is trippy and cool and angsty and funny!

Half Sick of Shadows by gallifreyburning (G, 14k words) (Summary: Frontline reports said Leela had been killed in battle at the Pillars of Consequence, fighting the Daleks in the Time War. During a chance encounter on a backwater planet, Narvin discovers that this version of events isn't quite accurate.) Notes: Just read everything by @gallifreyburning actually because she’s brilliant

TimeShift by gallifreyburning (G, 9k words) (Summary: After surviving the Time War and finding a happy ending, Leela wakes up in a strange place with an old antagonist, and must figure out how to get home.)

Homesick by mageofmind (renegadeartist) (G, 1k words) (Summary: Home is a complicated subject for Leela. She hopes one day this one won't feel so lonely.)

On Her Lady President's Secret Service by neveralarch (G, 13k words) (Summary: Narvin and Leela tracking down spies in the Citadel. And also fighting with people. And fighting with each other. And having discussions about CIA training methods. But they also track down spies.)

The Ascension of a Celestis by @time-lord-historian (NR) Notes: Time War angst

Fear by SongOfTheBadWolf (G, 1k words) (Summary: Narvin is often resistant to the support he needs the most, but Leela isn't about to give up on him. (set in season 4, after Annihilation.))

Dancing by @iristigerlily (G, 400 words) (Summary: What might have been going through Narvin’s head as Leela performed her fire dance in 1.2 “Square One”.)

until the night fades by President Romana (asoldandtrueasthesky) (G, 2k words) (Summary: Written for the classicwhosecretsanta 2016. Narvin and Leela explore the Axis together, still reeling from the loss of Braxiatel and dealing with a moping President. The Gallifrey they find feels too much like home for Leela to abandon and it's up to Narvin to prevent their group from splintering any further.)

Five Times Narvin Wasn’t Scolded for Showing Emotion, and One Time He Was by JaneTurenne (G, 6k words) (Summary: Time Lords aren’t meant to display their feelings—and, despite the odds, a Time Lord is the only thing Narvin has ever wanted to be. Narvin character study, with a side of shippery.) Notes: This was my favorite Gallifrey fic for a while and it’s probably still in my top three

To Feel the Sun From Both Sides by gallifreyburning (G, 3k words) (Summary: After years of adventures and misadventures and Time Wars, Leela and Narvin are finally getting married. Unfortunately, someone objects to the union, and goes to great lengths to save Leela from making the worst mistake of her life.) Notes: this fic is hilarious please read it

Strangeness and Charm by gallifreyburning (G, 27k words) (Summary: During a delicate treaty negotiation, Leela finds herself on the receiving end of an unwanted marriage proposal. Set during a magical golden hour in the vicinity of Enemy Lines.) Notes: Narvin/Leela fake married AU, warning: wonderful but unfinished so far

this untitled fic by @colinbakerstreet (NR) Notes: it’s kind of a character study thriller but I remember thinking it was fantastic

Error by thebraxiatelcollection (G, 3k words) (Summary: Spoilers for Gallifrey; Time War. Gallifrey. The CIA and the rest of Gallifrey presume Leela is dead or missing after her mission with The Master. Narvin refuses to be alone during times of war. He decides on the next best thing. He builds a copy of her. Narvin/Leela.) Notes: I remember this having a great twist somewhere

A Minor Problem by Irving-Braxiatel (G, 1k words) (Summary: “’The room is bugged.’ The words were scrawled on the note Narvin had slipped into Romana’s hand as they walked past one another.” Narvin has to deliver some bad news to President Romana, which, as it turns out, isn't as easy as it sounds.) Notes: wonderful pre-series Narvin/Romana with telepathy!

Uncharted Territory by stcrmpilot (G, 1k words) (Summary: Narvin has a lot of thinking to do. Leela seems determined to intrude.) Notes: Good good Axis angst. Stcrmpilot (@coordinator-narvin) writes a lot of Gallifrey stuff and they’re my friend so consider this a general rec and check out their stuff

The Tramp Stamp of Rassilon by gallifreyburning (G, 900 words) (Summary: Ace has an unfortunate evening at an off-planet royal wedding.) Notes: I cried when I read this

Nonsense All Compact (The Community Theatre Remix) by neveralarch (T, 12k words) (Summary: Braxiatel directs amateur community theatre in the small village of Gallifrey. Romana is the Council Leader in Gallifrey, and uses theatre as a political distraction. Eventually they hold hands.) Notes: I’m not exaggerating when I say I think this might be my favorite Gallifrey fic ever. You can also read the original non-AU story it’s based on, The Importance of Being On Stage by aralias (G, 3k words), which is also hilarious.

Repercussions by a_walking_shadow (T, 2k words) (Summary: Going after anyone from the tight-knit group at the top of Gallifreyan society is a terrible idea. They're protective of each other. They all possess the capacity to cause absolutely terrifying levels of destruction. And they tend to have loopholes in their moral codes, for whenever anyone threatens their friends.)

A Family Affair by Bagheera (T, 19k words) (Summary: Leela and Narvin have to work together to uncover a conspiracy against President Matthias.) Notes: This is a good Narvin/Leela relationship dynamics fic with a lot of stuff about Narvin’s family, and it was written before we got much canon background on him so it has a lot of interesting headcanons!

Family Ties by Floptopus (T, 4k words) (Summary: In the night, the nightmares come. Leela and Narvin have both lost parts of themselves - parts they'd never expected to live without.) Notes: prequel to The Hotel of Rassilon

Spirit Redux by gallifreyburning (T, 13k words) (Summary: Sometimes even Gallifrey's CIA agents need a little R&R. Who wouldn't enjoy a minibreak on the paradise planet of Davidia?) Notes: Narvin has A Time Of It in this fic and it’s great. It’s also slightly on the M end of T rated towards the end so watch out if spiciness isn’t your thing.

Refinement by oxydised_moron (T, 5k words) Notes: You guys it’s literally just evil!Leela/Narvin from Disassembled, I’m so glad someone wrote this

A Friendly Face by clockworkouroboros (T, 2k words) (Summary: Narvin and Romana have been ousted from Gallifrey after Romana’s latest attempt at treason and they land...in the middle of a war zone. This is set just after that.)

Dreams of Forgotten Lives by BeesOfGallifrey (T, 54k words) (Summary: The Time War is over, and thanks to the skullduggery of Irving Braxiatel, Leela and Narvin have survived it. One small problem: also thanks to the skullduggery of Irving Braxiatel, they have no memory of who they really are, and are both stranded in London in the late 1890s, living entirely separate lives…) Notes: very good Narvin/Leela fobwatched!AU, and I think there’s a sequel in the works with Romana)

Gallifrey: Ruination by Ellimac (T, 11k words) (Summary: In the search for a new Gallifrey, Leela, Narvin, and Romana find themselves on a Gallifrey far too hostile for their liking. When Narvin gets caught in the middle of a dangerous conflict with no way out, it's up to Leela and Romana to get all three of them back to safety before it's too late.) Notes: Great Axis adventure that’s very canon-divergent with injuries, so warning/note for that and a bit more gore and violence than the typical fic

The Shape of Things to Come by gallifreyburning (T, 8k words) (Summary: During the Time War, Leela and Narvin are on a mission to save a young Ace McShane from Daleks meddling in her timeline. Romana's mission briefing didn't remotely prepare them for a night in a punk club in London, 1986.) Notes: Again, just go read everything by gallifreyburning because I’m not listing everything here, but this is the first one by her I read and it’s delightful

Thinking in the Fifth Dimension by Irving-Braxiatel (T, 3k words) Notes: a sort of choose your own adventure story with a really cool format

Orchestral by gallifreyburning (T, 2k words) (Summary: During a CIA mission debrief, Leela and Narvin make a little music.) Notes: gallifreyburning specializes in writing these two arguing and making out but this is the one I’m choosing to rec because it was written for me and also Ace is there

The High School AU of Rassilon by clockworkouroboros (T, 12k words so far) (Summary: Narvin just wants a quiet, easy junior year of high school. Unfortunately, no one else in the school seems to feel the same way.) Notes: Current WIP. AU where they all go to a terrible teen movie high school. A Masterpiece I am proud to have helped with.

Cultural Exchange by JaneTurenne (M, 4k words) (Summary: Narvin knows Leela well enough to track her down after her abrupt departure — and comes to know her a great deal better.) Notes: This is rated T on Ao3 but I’m putting it with the M-rated stuff because it’s kind of spicy for just a T and I wanted to be safe for anyone wary

Superposition by gallifreyburning (M, 3k words) (Summary: At the end of Gallifrey 2.5: Imperiatrix, Narvin is injured while saving President Romana from a bomb, and is carted away for medical treatment just before Pandora takes control of Gallifrey. The next time we see him, in Gallifrey 3.1: Fractures, he's abandoned his post as Coordinator of the CIA and is working as part of Romana's resistance against Pandora. This is a glimpse of what happened in between these two events: the moment Narvin realizes what happened in the Panopticon in his absence, and is forced to choose sides.) Notes: the questionable Pandora/Narvin content I didn’t know I wanted until I had it. It sounds shifty and it is but this fic is so good I believed every second.

Mission Parameters by gallifreyburning (M, 8k words) (Summary: Andred is on a mission to bring down the Celestial Intervention Agency, and he's only just beginning to grasp everything this job entails.) Notes: Have you ever wanted to ship Narvin/Torvald and Narvin/Andred? Have you ever desired to watch a slow motion car wreck? If yes then this is the fic for you.

A Quiet Heart and its 'verse by gallifreyburning (E, but the other fics in the series are G and T, 70k+ words) (Summary: Leela and Narvin's moments between canon, from the Axis until the Time War. This is how a human warrior and her Time Lord came to fall in love. Romana makes occasional appearances, but this is primarily an expansion of the backstory between the Lady President's companions.) Notes: This is probably The Main Narvin/Leela Fic in the fandom at this point so most Gallifrey fans who follow me have probably at least read some of it, but y’all. It’s GoodTM and the smutty parts are pretty easy to skip over if that’s not your thing, so. Highly Recommend.

this Narvin/Leela bodyswap from the sexandpolitics dreamwidth, because sometimes I read silly porn and you all have to deal with that

Also! Note that there’s a lot more in my Gallifrey fic tag, including shorter things and lots of tumblr and askbox fic! Also because the Gallifrey fandom is so little I highly recommend reading everything by any of these authors or anything in any of the Gallifrey fic tags because in general it tends to all be pretty good

[johnabradley]

Exclusive: Carole Middleton's first interview: 'Life is really normal - most of the time'

‘Two things you need to know. Carole’s very, very nervous, and she doesn’t do sofas,’ the Telegraph’s team on the shoot warned me the night before I went down to Bucklebury in west Berkshire to interview her. ‘When we asked her to perch on one,’ they continued, ‘Carole’s response was, “Who sits around on a sofa?”’

Sure enough, a couple of days after the shoot, when Carole, clutching a soya latte (she’s recently gone vegan/flexitarian) and slightly late, sweeps into the boardroom at the HQ of Party Pieces, the business she set up in 1988, she doesn’t sit down but immediately takes me on a tour of her empire. Just like that. I don’t quite know what I expected – not trumpets, but perhaps some sense of ceremony – but then I don’t think she knew what to expect either. She’s never done an interview before.

The tour goes on so long that at one stage I wonder whether she’s planning to do the entire interview on the hoof as part of a cunning ruse to get it all over and done with before I’ve had time to press record. It does, however, give me time to adjust my retinas to the life-size Carole, inevitably smaller, but also more youthful, than the version the world has become accustomed to. This, lest we forget, is the future British king’s grandmother – arguably the second most famous granny on the globe.

In one sense, empire, as Carole Middleton would be the first to point out, is far too pompous a word for the collection of brick sheds and barns that Party Pieces has, over the years, colonised on a country estate in Berkshire, a 15-minute drive from the Middleton family home. There are a couple of large warehouses with radios blaring pop music and shelves of pre-filled party bags, fancy-dress costumes, table runners, Let’s Be Mermaids garlands, rose-gold team bride plates and much, much more. ‘And this is just a small part of it,’ says Carole.

There are around 7,000 products in total on the Party Pieces website. She’s seen the cactus, llama and fern trends come and, in some cases, go. But there will always be dinosaurs and princesses. The largest part of the business – at least half – remains children’s party accoutrements, but now there are also accessories for baby showers, 30th and 50th birthdays.

The subtext of all this is that Party Pieces is a serious business that was successfully operating a long time before what Carole later refers to as Catherine’s ‘impact’. It’s a private company and they won’t release figures, but during their busiest periods, they dispatch around 4,000 orders a week.

The beamed open-plan office is where most of her 30-strong admin team (none of whom seems given to hat-doffing in her presence) sit. As does Carole. ‘It’s better to be with everyone so you can see what’s going on,’ she notes. ‘They say it’s a bit like a hurricane arriving when I come in.’

The many Americans who order from Party Pieces would be charmed to know that chickens ran through central HQ until the Middletons moved in. But the décor is more Ryman than Soho Farmhouse. The beige carpets are worn, with several threadbare patches, and there are MDF desks and swivel chairs. The walls in the small boardroom are banana yellow.

Carole herself, however, is a vision in a khaki Ralph Lauren blazer and black T-shirt, black skinny M&S trousers (her legs are phenomenal) tucked into Russell & Bromley riding boots, and minimal jewellery – small drop earrings, a couple of gold rings and a thin gold chain with which she constantly toys. It is classic Middleton style, although Carole tells me she far prefers dresses (‘not ones that are tight round the middle though, my shape’s changing’). Maybe it’s the hair. She gets it done locally and it’s shorter and glossier than in recent pictures. The fact that it seems slightly darker emphasises how alike she and her daughter Catherine, the future Queen of England, look. Perhaps it’s the golden tan or the light-touch make-up – the kind where you can’t see the edges. But whereas Catherine and her sister Pippa look much the same on camera as off, Carole, all flashing, watchful hazel eyes and fluttery, girlish nerves is, at 63, far more striking, delicately boned and simultaneously softer-looking in real life than in pictures.

But the voice is what everyone wants to know about. Is it stewardessy (in her early 20s she worked for British Airways)? Elocutioned? Lynda Snell? None of the above. The best description is probably modern posh – not affected, not mockney. If we’re on a scale of BBC presenters, I’d say Mishal Husain. In terms of warmth… maybe Martha Kearney.

Although she hardly ever looks me in the eye, she is very cosy once she gets going: smart and interested. On the shoot, she asked everyone about themselves and dispensed breastfeeding tips to the make-up artist. I don’t think the solicitude towards others is forced, though it does take her a while to warm up (not in terms of temperature, she’s obviously got terrific circulation as there’s a bracing chill in that boardroom). But she does seem like a lot of fun.

You can see why the Middletons remain such a close family (Catherine texted her on the shoot to wish her luck) and why they all, spouses in tow, gravitate towards Granny Middleton. ‘I do love a good party,’ she says later. ‘I’m definitely a night owl and a real chatterbox. My children look at me sometimes…’

Obviously we’re not here to discuss the children, and certainly not their spouses (Pippa is married to James Matthews, a former racing-car driver, hedge-fund manager and heir to the Scottish feudal title Laird of Glen Affric; James, after an on-off relationship with TV presenter Donna Air, is currently single; their oldest daughter, we know about). Carole and her husband Michael have been commendably discreet during the 13 or so years since Catherine began dating the Duke of Cambridge. As Carole says, ‘Over the years, it’s proved wise not to say anything.’

But Party Pieces, her one-stop-solves-all business, has been going for more than 30 years, ‘and I just thought I should celebrate a little’. And it is a good story, part Catherine Cookson, part careers manual for would-be entrepreneurs, as well as being a business that, says Carole, has been flagrantly copied. Her own role model she says, was Laura Tenison, founder of kidswear brand JoJo Maman Bébé, whom she went to watch at a few conferences in the early days of her own company.

Carole Goldsmith, as she was, seems to have had a strong work ethic from the start. Her father Ron was a painter and decorator. Her mother Dorothy, aka The Duchess (because she always looked so impeccable), was a character. ‘Everyone adored my mother,’ she says when I relate how the taxi driver who picked me up from a local train station and drove me to the Party Pieces HQ, told me she’d been a close friend of The Duchess.

Ron and Dorothy moved to Berkshire from west London 10 years after Carole and Michael. Carole’s own closeness to her children and grandchildren is an echo of the relationship she had with her own family, which was ‘small but tight’. Her younger brother, ‘Uncle Gary’ of Maison de Bang Bang fame (at the time of Catherine and William’s wedding, the press had a joyful time detailing Gary Goldsmith’s party reputation), is also an entrepreneur.

Carole spent her first six months in a council flat in Ealing. She initially left school at 16, got a job with the Prudential in Holborn and hated it. ‘It was one of those massive offices with rows and rows of desks.’ So far, so early 1970s. But Carole knew she could achieve more and asked Ron if she could return to school to do her A levels. She got four: art, economics, English literature and geography, which she wanted to teach. ‘But my parents couldn’t afford to put me through college, so I thought I’d see if I could get a bit of money together and fund myself.’

While she’s recounting this, she suddenly remembers she got a job – she can’t remember the year – on the John Lewis A level trainee scheme. This has always been considered the gold standard in retail and was extremely hard to get on to. Carole is bemused by her own memory lapse: ‘Gosh… how did I forget? I can’t even remember when it was. I’ll have to check with Mike.’

This is a woman who clearly spends even less time navel-gazing than she does lounging on sofas. Too busy cooking. She adores cooking. ‘I probably have more cookery books than anything.’ At the moment her favourites are Mary Berry (‘she does use a lot of cream, though’) and Amelia Freer. The combination of the nation’s favourite baker and the fashionable nutritional therapist, who helped singer Sam Smith lose 3½st, seems very Carole.

The John Lewis gig was a dream, particularly her stint in china and glass at Peter Jones, which is where she realised how interested she was in finding out what kind of merchandise sold. But then they told her she had to do a spell on the shop floor as a sales assistant. ‘I thought, blow that. I’m not doing that for six months – it was really boring.’ So she got a secretarial job (she can still do Pitman shorthand) at BEA (before it merged with BOAC to become British Airways in 1974), but didn’t think much of secretarial work, either, so brushed up her French and got a job as ground staff.

‘It’s not like it is now,’ she explains, coming over momentarily a touch Mrs Bennet. ‘You had to be able to speak another language. It was almost like being at university.’ I think from all this we can conclude that Carole Goldsmith was pretty clear she wasn’t going to be fobbed off with also-ran situations.

The newly formed BA had trained too many pilots, so it was redeploying them on the ground and Carole found herself working alongside them as well as other senior staff.

Enter Michael Middleton, six years her senior, ‘rather shy’ but very handsome… A year after they married, she had Catherine; 18 months after that Pippa and then the Middletons moved to Jordan for three years, where Michael worked as a aero manager for an international air station (he was never a pilot). Jordan life sounds comfortable. There was a lot of socialising at the British Embassy, some help at home and the girls were in nursery school. But, says Carole, ‘I wasn’t convinced I wanted to be an expat mum and Mike’s job there was coming to an end.’

By the time they returned to the UK in 1987, Catherine was four and a half, Pippa 18 months younger and Carole, now 32, was pregnant with their third child, James. ‘I thought, “Oooh, bills to pay.” But I also had this strong feeling that I hadn’t achieved anything. I got married at 25, had Catherine at 26…’

Party Pieces launched the same year her son was born, in 1987, with a simple idea about a one-stop place where you could get everything you need for a children’s party. Carole visited the Birmingham Spring Fair, where she sourced some suppliers of paper plates and cups, stuck up a self-designed flyer at Catherine’s local playgroup in Bucklebury, and began stuffing bags from her kitchen table.

Business was steady if unspectacular – this was pre-internet, so responses weren’t always immediate. But then she had the brainwave of advertising with The Red House, a children’s book club she’d subscribed to once her brood began to read: 10,000 flyers to begin with and then 100,000. That’s when Party Pieces really took off.

She moved from her kitchen to a small business unit in nearby Hungerford – Mike built the packing benches. ‘That’s when Michael gave up his job at BA and came in. My mother thought that was big, because at that stage he probably wouldn’t have got employment again, but we could see this was a business that could scale up.’

When I ask about struggles or disasters she more or less shrugs off the notion. ‘We were pretty much the only ones doing this sort of thing when we started. It was really clear almost from the start that this was going to work. I got help from other mums – paperwork and that kind of thing… I think it’s easier to start a business when you’re young. You’re less aware of the pitfalls and maybe you have less of a lifestyle to lose.’

Listening to Carole talk about those early years, what comes across is her resourcefulness and stoicism. She feels they were lucky. ‘Running a business is really very simple: you buy things and sell them for a profit.’ Mike’s decision to quit his job was, she says, their wild card. She is very clear that the business was her idea. ‘And it was a good idea or it wouldn’t have taken off.’ Were there no sleepless nights over the financing? ‘We never took really huge risks. We had to fund our own growth,’ she replies. She doesn’t get stressed, she says, although she was clearly anxious about this interview. Maybe that British Airways training ingrained the necessity of appearing serene while paddling furiously below the surface.

When I ask about juggling a fledgling business with three small children, particularly when working mothers were not as common as they are now, she responds instantly. ‘It was my business, so I could work around the holidays.’ She makes it sound straightforward. She understands the tussle, though, but in the end, she’s a boss. ‘In this office, I see the challenge of working mothers – but if I need them here…’

There was spillage into their home life, ‘Mike and I often talked about work in the evenings or on holiday, but we enjoyed it. I never really felt I was a working mother although I was – and the children didn’t either. They grew up with it.’

The girls were at school till 6pm. That’s a long day: someone who observed them from a distance says Catherine and Pippa were always hard workers at school and encouraged by Carole to hone accomplishments that would serve beyond academia, such as skiing. ‘James would get picked up – very occasionally by someone else – and come back to the office and be here with me,’ continues Carole. ‘I was often finished by 6pm and I didn’t have a long train journey. I think it’s really good to work. It was part of the children’s lives – it still is – and they’d come and help. They did a lot of modelling. Catherine was on the cover of one of the catalogues, blowing out candles. Later on, she did some styling and set up the First Birthday side of the business. Pippa did the blog. I still value their ideas and opinions.’

There was never any doubt in the Middletons’ minds that they would base their family and business in Bucklebury. ‘Do you live in London?’ Carole asks me, looking sympathetic when I nod. Later, when she drives me to the train station, scooping a pile of papers and a plastic cup from the passenger seat of her Range Rover, to save me phoning for possibly non-existent taxis, she shows me the spot she and Michael first fell in love with.

She loves this tiny pocket of remoteness – the fact it’s only an hour from London, that she can take their four spaniels and one golden retriever (James, who lives with them when he’s not in London, shares two of the dogs) for a long walk straight from their house, and the solid, picturesque red-brick architecture. ‘We really fell on our feet moving to this area,’ she says. Their first home was ‘a very sweet semi-detached cottage. We stayed there until Catherine was 13, so the children spent a lot of their youth there.’

There were two more moves – Oak Acre, a detached house where Prince William famously landed his Chinook helicopter in 2008, and the more secluded, seven-bedroomed, Grade II- listed Bucklebury Manor. She’s good at nesting, she says. ‘If you choose your house wisely, you don’t have to do too much. We almost just replicated what we did before. Farrow & Ball Cord and Hay [both shades of beige] – you can’t go wrong.’

In photos, Bucklebury Manor is what estate agents would call impressive, a description that must set Carole all ajangle. She’s on a mission to appear as unaffected and normal as possible. Later, when we’re discussing her love of Christmas trees and how she likes to have as many as possible in the house, including one in the grandchildren’s rooms, ‘so that they can decorate it themselves’, there is one of many long pauses, while she ponders the consequences of a seemingly innocuous exchange. ‘That makes me sound as though I live in a mansion, doesn’t it?’ Erm, you’re the future king’s grandmother, I think. Would a mansion be out of the question?

Maybe she’s right to be cautious. Over the years it has been she, rather than Michael, who has caught the full beam of the Middleton-focused attention, much of which fixes on the idea of her as a pushy arriviste. She stopped reading the stories about herself online over a year ago. I’m surprised it took her so long. ‘Well, I thought it was better to know what people thought. But it doesn’t make any difference. I’m not really sure how I’m perceived now,’ she says. ‘But the thing is… it is really normal – most of the time.’

When I ask her where she most likes to shop, there’s another pained pause. ‘How’s this going to make me sound?’ I half- expect her to confide that her secret vice is Harrods’ personal- shopping department, but only if she can get it closed to the public. But no. Peter Jones is her happy place. ‘The staff are lovely and they all know me.’ She also loves Burford Garden Company in the Cotswolds, where she and Pippa will happily spend the best part of a day.

More Middle England you cannot get. She even loves Michael McIntyre. She could be protesting too far when she later opines that Jigsaw is a bit pricey. She loves Samantha Sung’s shirt dresses and Goat, but likes to shop in the sale. She finds the music in Selfridges a bit overwhelming and she only very occasionally patronises Catherine Walker, but I suspect this is how the Middletons really are.

Carole is known to drive a hard bargain when she negotiates – she’s not a businesswoman for nothing. She seems genuinely concerned that if I take the train back to London from a different station, I’ll have to buy another ticket (all of £22). There are things they spend money on – property, children’s education, holidays – and things they consider to be a waste of money. Fashion is definitely a bit suspect. ‘Do you think it’s important?’ she asks me. When I say it’s a huge UK success story, that first impressions are clearly important and that style, rather than fashion, is worth cultivating, she nods. ‘Now you put it like that, I see what you mean.’

In some ways, there’s a touching naivety about Carole. I don’t think any of the family, with the possible exception of James (and this is based solely on pictures; I’ve never met him) give one iota about being cool. She’d rather be doing other things than clothes shopping. Party Pieces remains a full-time job for her.

‘I don’t see myself stopping [work]. If I did I’d have to have so many projects on. I’d have to redecorate the house. I’d love to travel, but then I’d miss the grandchildren. No,’ she ponders, as if just deciding this, retirement is not on the cards. ‘I’ve got a billion ideas I still want to do.’

[cutegansey]

Do you have any head canons about Blue and Gansey?

Precious anon,

I am sorry it has taken me practically forever to respond to this. I have been extra busy with school nowadays and I wanted to have enough time to sit down and give you something special!!

Anyhow. This morning, I was trying to think of something cute with Blue and Gansey. ‘Cause sometimes all a girl needs is a little fictional cuteness to make her whole day go better. Here is what I have for you:

Blue is sick with a really serious cold. Her coughing shakes the entire house at 300 Fox Way. The normal protocol for people being sick at Blue’s house involves 3 stages.

The first is Quarantine. With so many people under one roof, if one lady gets sick it puts the entire house at risk. With a house full of psychics who are needed to meet with clients and actually make a living, a flood of sickness is Not what they need. Therefore, if any woman gets sick, she gets locked in her room, with only one designated visitor who brings them food and fluids.

The next two steps are not nearly as harsh as the first. But I might be speaking too soon.

Step two is Tea. What sounds like some nice, warm, cozy, and comforting hot liquid for the sick party, isn’t actually that. “Tea” involves a strict regimen of tea. Cups and cups and cups of tea, of all different varieties. This, of course, consists of the less than desirable varieties of tea as well. Quickly, the patient begins to feel as if they are being forcefully poisoned rather than nursed.

Step three is Reading. For the psychic residents of 300 Fox Way this generally means a psychic reading, something to focus their energy and calm them. For Blue though, it just means reading feminist and/or ecology literature. This is where that designated visitor comes in, the one that brings her food and fluids (aka the CURSED TEA).

When Blue was growing up, that visitor was always her mom. However, when Gansey gets word of Blue’s illness he gets a little nervous. The pitiful boy loves his girlfriend so much, he gets anxious when she’s sick. Blue texts him in the morning that she won’t be able to meet up with him and the gang at nino’s that evening. Gansey asks why, and upon reading her explanation that she was sick, he snatches the keys to the Pig and flies over to 300 Fox Way.

By the time he arrives, Blue has already been quarantined. Gansey is being his polite yet forceful self and tries to negotiate his way into checking on Blue. I should mention that it is still only 7 in the morning and the women of 300 Fox Way are still in their cranky morning moods. Maura is doubly exhausted from having to deal with a less than compliant, sick Blue Sargent who has a cranky morning mood to rival that of Calla.

Somehow, Gansey makes a bargain with Maura to see the quarantined Blue and take care of her for the day. Gansey just wants to see his girlfriend and doesn’t particularly care if they put him to work. (Little does he know the number of tea mugs he will have to carry between the kitchen and Blue’s room, but that isn’t important right now.)

Upon Maura’s permission, Gansey races up to Blue’s room, ready to rush in and begin checking her temperature, fluffing her pillow, making her drink water, and sitting by her bedside (and essentially releasing his inner Mothering Superpowers). Just before he enters though, he stop to knock quietly, in case Blue is sleeping.

But, no, she isn’t. That Pygmy Tyrant is sick and knows how to cough. Upon Gansey’s soft, yet elaborate knock Blue tries to call for him to come in, thinking its her mother bringing the next round of poison tea. When she tries to utter words a sound shoots from the back of her throughout akin to tearing cloth.

After the 30 second sequence of searing coughs is over, Gansey recovers from his flinch to open the door and peer in at Blue.

“NO! I cannot take it anymore. No more of that wretched liquid, I will tie my sheets together and leap out of the window next time,” moans Blue.

Gansey’s eyes leap to her small figure on the bed underneath a mountain of quilts. Blue looks even more fearsome in her sickly state, but in the sort of way that makes Gansey smile slightly.

“Wretched? Nice vocabulary, Jane” Gansey comments as he moves into the room, closing the door behind him.

Blue’s eyes fix on him, leaning against her bedroom door. She’s a little surprised, but she just smiles.

“When you spend your days dating a walking dictionary, you tend to pick up a few words. What are you doing here?”

Gansey smiles in the way that makes his dimple stand out on his cheek. Blue would really like to kiss him in that exact spot on his cheek, but she’s sick and doesn’t want to infect him. She tries to remind herself of this.

“You said you were sick, and I wanted to be sure you were okay.”

As Gansey takes a few steps towards her bed, Blue notices how he pushes the frames of his glasses further up on his nose. She realizes he rushed over to 300 Fox Way and didn’t have time to put in his contacts.

“It’s just a cold,” she tries to say before erupting in a cacophony of coughing. Blue closes her eyes against the raw pain in her throat. Gansey winces at the harsh noise coming from his tiny girlfriend.

“Do you want a glass of water?” Gansey asks simply.

“Anything that’s not tea,” Blue replies, grateful.

Gansey returns quickly with the biggest glass of water available in 300 Fox Way.

“Can I-Do you want me to do anything else?” Gansey asks cautiously. He shifts his weight from foot to foot, glancing around the room. Really he just wants to do something. Blue gulps down water, the cool liquid soothing her phlegmy throat.

“Well, normally it’d be my mom taking care of me when I’m sick. She’d read me a book or two, talk to me, bring me tea. You really don’t have to do that last one though. The tea around here can be pretty sketchy…” Blue’s voice starts to get nasally, sticky and scratchy.

“What book do you want to read?” Gansey asks quickly. The last thing he wants is Blue’s speaking to him to be the cause of another round of violent coughing.

Blue gestures to the bookshelf, a few feet away from her bed. Of course, everything in her room is a few feet away from everything else. Gansey, who is used to the cavernous rooms of Monmouth Manufacturing might be expected to feel claustrophobic in Blue’s room. However, there is something about the tininess of the room that makes him feel comfortable. Cozy? Is that the right word? As Gansey slides over to the bookshelf, which has a few multicolored scarves hanging off the side that feature constellations of oversized buttons. He touches the fringed edge of one of the vibrant scarves, sliding it over so he can get a better look at the books on the shelf.

Maybe not cozy? Not like mugs of coffee and warm snug quilts and a fire place. That’s normally the sort of thing that the word cozy brings to mind. Blue’s room is not that sort of small. It’s not quaint, bijou, or even just compact. What good was it to be a walking dictionary if you can’t find the right words for things? Gansey grimaced at the thought. Words were an issue he didn’t want to think about right now but was going to anyways.

Blue glances over at Gansey as he pulls out a well-worn copy of “The Magic Tree House”. From where she is on the bed, she can’t see which of the full collection that she keeps on her shelf it is, not that it particularly matters. Gansey laughs softly.

“It’s been awhile since I saw one of these books. I absolutely loved reading them when I was little. Helen was the one who got me hooked on the series. She had a few and shared them with me. I got a bunch of them for Christmas that year.” Gansey smiles down at the familiar book. Blue smiles too.

“It’s no wonder you liked those books. They’ve got history, adventures, and magic. I guess a young Gansey is still a Gansey,” Blue comments, smiling up at Gansey.

She continues, “I loved them too, when I was a kid. I think I first got into them when some cousin left them at the house. I started saving up my cash to buy the rest of the series from the used bookstore here in town. I managed to get a full set. I keep it around in case any of the younger cousins want to read them. It’s been a long while since I read them myself.”

Gansey kneels down in front of the bookshelf, studying the book spines. He slides back in the one he pulled out, only the draw out another slim paperback. Gansey rocks back in his boat-shoes onto his heels before springing to his feet, book in hand.

“This is the first one, we might as well start there,” he declares, deciding.

Gansey strides over to Blue’s cramped desk in the corner of the room, pulling the chair out. The cushion has been stitched and embellished with what he knows to be Blue’s creative hands. Threads of color run across the tie-dyed cloth. As he pulls the chair to Blue’s bedside, he decides. It’s not small, cozy, cramped, or any other possible synonyms. He decides that ‘intimate’ might be the best choice. Blue has put her stamp on the entire room. To be in the place is to be inside her head, to know her. That’s what makes it so comfortable. Gansey loves Blue Sargent and her tiny, crazily decorated room is an extension of her.

Just as Gansey flips “The Magic Tree House: Dinosaurs Before Dark” open to the first page and starts to read the first word, Blue coughs like a quiet firecracker. Gansey quickly moves her glass of water closer to her hand. Blue takes a sip and turns her eyes on him.

“Read to me,” she says in her ragged voice. Gansey reads to her.